Bittersweet
by ShadowRose18
Summary: Emma Tolly's love life was like a lolly. Bittersweet. TracyTancredEmma. Ends up as TancxEm .::COMPLETE::.
1. The Flower of Hope Begins to Wilt

**ShadowRose18:** uh… thought this while day-dreaming in the middle of a maths test xD

Yes, I'm very bad. I know (sighs) Anyway, here it is.

This is birthday gift for Twilight-Fangirl-Saf (I was originally going to post this after I finished Tanma…but yeah… oh well) So, Happy Birthday Saf! :D

Oh yeah, if all you reviewers out there tell me your birthdays, I can try to post chapters as presents XD

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**Short summary:**

Emma Tolly's love life was like a lolly. Bittersweet. TracyTancredEmma. (Ends up as TancxEm). Minor CharlieOlivia, LysanderLauren, GabrielOC, FidelioOC, BillyOC and AsaOC

**Long summary:**

Emma Tolly's love life was like a lolly. She dreamed and wished and longed for the sweet taste in my mouth. But when the time came, she found that it was bitter. She then had two options. Keep it and hope for the best, or leave and never find anything like it. But she discovered something. If she kept holding on, through all the bitterness, then under the bitter layer, there is something even sweeter than she had imagined. The sweetest taste of all. TracyTancredEmma. (Ends up as TancxEm). Minor CharlieOlivia, LysanderLauren, GabrielOC, FidelioOC, BillyOC and AsaOC

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**Chapter 1 – The Flower of Hope…Begins to Wilt**

Emma Tolly didn't understand why Tancred Torrson was the way he was, but she did know one thing. She was uncontrollably in love with him.

She would sit with a book, often under the huge oak in the garden, and just watching him laugh with Lysander or see his hair sway in the wind (whether it was his own or natural, it didn't matter). She would always sigh, and day dream of running her hand through that hair of his. But it would never happen. They were friends and nothing was going to change that.

She thought that it was easy. Locking away her feelings. Keeping them hidden, so that no one, not even herself, would know that she had a feeling even slightly more than a friendship. She was fooling herself. She knew that, but it was the only way to stop herself from hating every single girl, just because they even glanced at Tancred. And to help her ignore the ache she felt when she remembered that Tancred would never see her as more than a friend.

But it didn't last. When _Tracy Morsell_ had shown up, and made Tancred go goggle-eyed with her, her heart broke. The glass box, keeping the feelings in, shattered. Her real feelings surfaced and she couldn't stop it. She told herself to ignore it, just keep her feelings in. Just like she had before. But she couldn't, because every time she mended the box, she would see Tancred and Tracy together again and the mending would go to waste.

So Emma distanced herself from her crush. She didn't sit next to him, or opposite him in the King's Room, ignored when he called out to her at the Art Cafeteria, and didn't meet up with the others at the Pet's Café if she heard that Tancred was coming.

All her friends understood, Olivia especially. She constantly complained about Charlie, her own crush. She would always be dropping small hints, big ones sometimes even, but the "thick-headed idiot" (as Olivia called him) would never understand. Olivia herself wondered why she had fallen in love with an idiot. Emma's comment was maybe she fell in love with Charlie _because_ he was an idiot. Olivia had just folded her arms, given an annoyed 'hmph' and turned away from her friend.

Emma distanced herself, making more time to pity her own helpless state. When Charlie got detention, Emma had used her aunt's bookshop as an excuse, but, in reality, Emma needed to be alone. Every time they spoke about the 'gossip on the latest of Tanc', it always drove knives in every part of her body. She would stiffen and then leave, giving the others a question think about.

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Emma was broken. Mentally and emotionally. Nothing could fix her. No glue, no sticky tape, no kind words. Nothing. Because she was like broken glass, like shreds of fabric, like an angel without wings. She was like a flower, wilting in the poisoned wind.

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**ShadowRose18:** okay, sorry this was kind of short. This story is going to be a lot more emotional and stuff, so it'll test my describing skills. Anyway, hope you enjoyed it and please review :D


	2. The Poisoned Wind Accidently Blows

**ShadowRose18:** The first chapter was kind of like a summary of how Em felt about Tancred dating Tracy. This chapter will be from Tanc's point of view.

Enjoy!

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Chapter 2 -The Poisoned Wind Accidently Blows

Tancred was in denial.

It took all that time with Tracy to realise it. When Lysander had commented that Tancred liked Emma, he instantly denied it. When he returned home, however, he found that it was possible, but his pride stopped him from admitting it to Lysander, and mainly himself, that he liked Emma Tolly.

He tried desperately to convince himself that he did NOT like Emma in that way. To prove it, to himself, Lysander and everyone else, he dated Tracy. He didn't just choose any girl though. Tancred had had a small crush on Tracy when he first met her but, conveniently, at the the time, the two were paired up for a project. That's when Tancred made his move. Tracy had agreed whole heartedly and so they began dating. It felt right at first, to be dating, but slowly, as he spent more and more time with Tracy, he began to realise that it was wrong.

But, again, his pride stopped him. His pride made him hesitate again. Unsure, he continued dating Tracy, but when Charlie was in trouble, he knew that it was a "now or never" situation.

He broke up with Tracy and half of the pressure on his shoulders lifted.

He still had one more thing to do, and this time he wasn't going to hesitate.

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**ShadowRose18: **okay, so this is short as well, but it's harder to...relate to Tancred. For me at least. I'm more of an Emma kind of person (laughs)

So yeah, enjoy, while I get the third (and last) chapter done! :D


	3. Stop The Wind and Let The Flower Bloom

**ShadowRose18:** third and final chappie :3

This isn't like... summary/description type anymore. It'll be events.

Enjoy! :D

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Chapter 3 - Stop The Wind and Let The Flower Bloom

With Aunt Julia on a date with Paton Yewbeam again, Emma was alone in the bookshop.

Just as she was climbing down the step-ladder, from shelving books, the phone rang.

"Hello?" Emma answered,

"Em...Can you come meet me now?" a husky voice on the other end whispered.

Emma froze. Biting her lip, she answered.

"Talk to Lysander if you have problems, Tancred."

"He's on a date with Lauren. Please?" the storm-boy seemed desperate.

Emma hesitated then sighed.

"Alright. Where?"

"On the cathedral steps."

"Okay"

Emma put the phone down. Taking a deep breath, she went into the sitting room to get her coat.

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Tancred was wearing jeans and a warm coat, even so he was cold. The cathedral clock chimed five times. 5 o'clock. Where was she?

Just as the thought came to mind, he saw her. Her hair was tied in a single ponytail; jeans, a warm coat and a thick woollen blue scarf around her neck kept her warm.

Tancred breathed hot air on his fingers as she approached.

"You had better have a good reason for this, Tancred." was the first thing she said. Tancred gave her a grim smile.

"I...I broke up with Tracy," he said. She didn't flinch. She just kept staring ahead, standing beside him.

"So?" she said after some time. Tancred was surprised.

"Don't you care?" he questioned.

"Not particularly." she replied. No one spoke for sometime.

"Though I am wondering why,' she said.

"Because," Tancred said, nervousness creeping up into his throat, "I found out that I wasn't in love with Tracy from the start. There was someone else."

"Really? So who is this 'someone else'?" Either Emma really didn't care or she was concealing her curiosity.

Tancred took a few deep breaths.

"You."

Time seemed to freeze. Emma, wide-eyed, just stared at him. Yet, he couldn't move either. He was lost in the moment, staring at her eyes.

Finally the gentle breeze snapped them out of their daze.

"Um..." Emma bit her lip; Tancred continued to stare at her.

"I - I have to get back to the shop, otherwise Auntie will worry..." she trailed off.

"Y-Yeah..." Tancred answered, embarrassed. He turned his gaze down to the stone steps below him.

Suddenly Emma's lips were on his cheek. By the time he lifted his head, she was back where was before. She gave him a gentle smile.

"See you on Monday, Tancred,' Emma said smiling.

Tancred smiled in return and watched her walk out of view. Then he walked home, the secret smile remaining on his lips.

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**ShadowRose18: **you just gotta have the happy ending right? (laughs)

Overall, I pretty proud of Bittersweet, thought he third chapter didn't turn out the way I expected (I originally had her not accepting him and stuff, but then I was like: NOOOO!! Em wouldn't do that!!!) So, yeah. This is how it ended up, and I'm leaving it at that.

And hip hip hooray! I have another story completed :D

Now, I'm gonna type up the CharlieOlivia oneshot and the TancredEmma stories XD

Bye bye! And please review!


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